US election 2020: Bernie Sanders leads in new Democratic primary poll

A new Zogby Analytics poll puts Hillary Clinton’s former primary rival ahead of other key Democrats to face Donald Trump in 2020.

The Zogby, released on 12th September, found that Bernie Sanders is the number one favourite amongst Democratic primary and caucus voters.

Poll respondents were presented with a hypothetical range of candidates and were asked to pick who they would vote for.

Progressive giant and independent senator from Vermont Bernie Sanders came out best, with 28% of respondents choosing him.

In second place, came Elizabeth Warren on 12% followed by former Vice President Joe Biden.

Mark Zuckerberg, who has been talked about as a future presidential candidate, was chosen by 7% of the respondents, and is followed by Kamala Harris, a new senator from California. CNN reports that Harris has co-sponsored Bernie Sanders’ progressive single-payer healthcare plan.

A further 23% of respondents said they were not sure while the other four hypothetical candidates were picked by 3% or less of respondents.

Analysis:

Overall, the poll suggests that Bernie Sanders’ 2016 movement has had a significant effect on the party. Sanders is the favourite amongst Democratic primary voters and some of his key progressive allies such as Warren and Harris have also made an impact.

However, the primaries are not for another two three years so preferences can and will change. Furthermore, the inclusion of Mark Zuckerberg, who realistically won’t run arguably distorts the poll’s quasi-realistic credibility.

SEE ALSO: US election 2020: what are the odds of a Bernie Sanders presidency?On top of this, it is worth noting that the sample of Democratic primary voters is small (356), meaning that the margin of error is relatively high. Still, it suggests that progressives such as Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren and Kamala Harris are making some headway. The 2020 Democratic primary is the left of the party’s to lose.